Home Inspections are designed to inform the home buyer of the working status of your future big investment, usually your biggest investment. You will want to be informed about a house you may have spent 30 mins in before you decided to buy it. The Great Smoky Mountains are home to hundreds of Log Cabins, so termites are a big item to have checked. Most lenders require a termite inspection also. This is a fairly inexpensive inspection, usually costing less than $75. A survey is personal preference for the buyer. Some properties will demand for the protection of the buyer, to have a survey preformed to answer questions. Things like, "Is that garage on my land?" Or the property might be a foreclosure with no information on it what so ever. A survey is a buyer beware product. If you have question on the survey, talking to an attorney or your REALTOR® might help you with your decision.
A home purchase is like none other. First of all, its a lot of money! Typically taking folks 30 years to pay off. For second, they cost a lot to maintain. A roof for instance on a 1200 sq foot house might cost, $5000 to replace. There might be some sort of foundation. If there is, it is something you will want to monitor depending on your region. Water intrusion is your enemy! There are a number of small items that can cause big problems too. Things on a regular basis, we just don't think about.
This is why home inspections are so vital in this purchase. In this process you are hiring a professional of this specific trade. Your REALTOR®, although might know about some things, is not licensed to speak about the homes status or its operation. You must hire an inspector to give you the most accurate report. In Tennessee, Home Inspectors are licensed by the state, this might vary from state to state.
Your home inspector will spend a few hours in your potential new home. He/She will go through a checklist of items, from the outlets, water temperature, looking for stains, checking any leaks for moisture, looking for odd imperfections, the roof, the walls, the siding, flushing toilets, driveway, sidewalk, stairs, deck heights, all the things we just haven't thought of and more, the list goes on. This is the kind of detailed info you are paying for. Once the home inspections are complete, the licensed professional will supply you with a detailed report for your review. The termite report, might only be 1 page, the survey will be a map with detailed info about the lot and where the house lies, the home inspection report will be 20 pages plus.
This report and all of its information is a lot to take in. Remember you hired someone to tell you everything about the house your going to purchase and this is what they have done for you. They will have pictures of all of its problems, big and small. These issues can be a lot to understand especially if you were not present during home inspection. Once reviewed, any questions should be directed towards your inspector. They are the best person to discuss these with.
In closing, TN Smoky Mtn Realty recommends you have home inspections. The bank has an appraisal to protect their assets so you should have home inspections to protect yours! If you need help with finding the right home inspector, termite inspector, or surveyor, please feel free to talk to us about this process so we can guide you in the right direction.